A broadcasting environment is changing according to a development of technologies and a demand of viewers. As a broadcasting media becomes diverse, the broadcasting environment makes transition from a conventional analog broadcasting to a digital broadcasting, and from a terrestrial broadcasting to a cable broadcasting, a satellite broadcasting, an IP-TV (Internet Protocol TV) which is a service for providing a multimedia data using a high speed communication network, a T-DMB (Terrestrial Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) and a S-DMB (Satellite Digital Multimedia Broadcasting).
A capacity of the digital broadcasting is four to eight times that of the conventional analog broadcasting such that additional services in various fields such as sports, movies, home shoppings and musics may be provided. Moreover, thanks to the diverse broadcasting media, the viewer may choose from a large selection of the broadcasting media such as the cable broadcasting, the satellite broadcasting, the IP-TV and the DMBs as well as terrestrial broadcasting.
In addition, various digital broadcasting applications as well as a conventional broadcast program may be transmitted in the digital broadcasting. The digital broadcasting is capable of associating with a data included in the broadcast program or a data additionally transmitted though a return channel, thereby allowing the digital broadcasting application with interactive capabilities.
Various data services using the digital broadcasting application are expected to play an important role in spreading the digital broadcasting due to an easy use for the viewer.
A description of the method for providing a conventional data application is given below.
The data application generated by a data application providing server is transmitted to a head-end system carrying out the digital broadcasting. The head-end system transmits the broadcast program including an audio/video data and the data application to receiver via a digital broadcasting network.
Hereinafter, “digital broadcasting network” refers to various broadcasting networks such as a terrestrial broadcasting network, a cable broadcasting network, a satellite broadcasting network, a high speed communication network of an IP-TV (Internet Protocol TV) and a DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) network.
The data application received from the data application providing server is decoded and provided to a viewer by the receiver.
For instance, the receiver may be a digital TV or a set-top box in compliance with the terrestrial broadcasting specification such as the ATSC and interactive data broadcasting specification such as DASE in case of the terrestrial digital broadcasting. The receiver may be a set-top box supporting the broadcasting specification such as OpenCable and DVB and a data broadcasting specification suitable for the broadcasting network such as OCAP and MHP in case of the cable broadcasting or the satellite broadcasting. The receiver may be a set-top box or a mobile communication terminal supporting a corresponding data broadcasting specification in case of the IP-TV or the DMB.
However, the method for providing the conventional data application has following disadvantages.
First, the disadvantage is caused by a limited bandwidth of the digital broadcasting network.
Specifically, because the digital broadcasting network is used to transmit a broadcast program as well as the data application, the number, the size and the configuration of the data application that can be transmitted through the digital broadcasting network are limited.
For instance, a data size of a HD data application is larger than that of a SD data application. Therefore, the HD data application requires a higher bandwidth than the SD data application and the number of the HD data application that can be transmitted through the digital broadcasting network, and the number of the HD data application should be smaller than that of the SD data application. Moreover, the configuration and the number of the HD data application should be minimized so that the HD data application can be transmitted within the bandwidth of the digital broadcasting network.
Accordingly, a personalized data application cannot be provided due to the limit in the configuration and the number of the HD data application.
Second, the disadvantage is caused by the time necessary for executing the data application.
The head-end system divides into packets and transmits the data application to the receiver, and the receiver reconstructs the data application from the packets.
However, when some of the packets are lost during the transmission, the data application cannot be reconstructed and executed. When an error occurs during the transmission, the head-end system should re-transmit an entirety of the data application, and the receiver should reconstruct the data application from re-transmitted packets. Therefore, additional time is necessary. Moreover, the receiver loads and executes the entirety of the data application such that an execution speed is degraded and excessive resource of the receiver is used.
As a result, additional 10 to 30 seconds are necessary to execute and provide the data application to the user.
Third, the disadvantage lies in the receiver itself.
That is, because the receiver has limited resources, the data application having a large size cannot be executed. Therefore, the number and the configuration of the data application are limited to the resources of the receive.